Well, after suiting up last night and having the battery on charge until the optimate said "good" two days earlier the bloody thing would not start, flat battery. The battery is a heavy duty lucas thats around 12 months old albeit left flat for much of winter. I have charged it last night again off the bike and within 90 minutes it was reading good again. I am assuming its had it though. I do wonder though as I had the headlight on and off thing whilst riding a month or so ago and wondered if the regulator/rectifier could be playing a part in this (although this issue was not present last time out)? Would a faulty reg/rectifier drain the battery with the ignition off? If not, I will go get a battery.
Lead Acid batteries do not like going completely flat and suffer more if left like that. I would say you need a new one
Looks like you are correct higgy. Just had it checked and the volts are fine but the amps are very poor. That's my 3rd battery in 3 years lol.
I have read that the RR51 Electrex reg/rec may have a small battery drain within it's circuitry..........I have checked on my bike (lead acid battery and RR51) and can find no evidence.......I have used a multi-meter and a small bulb.......neither show a current passing.
Never let it get flat. Optimates etc seem to cause almost as many problems as they solve, so just give it a charge every few weeks over winter. Get an AGM battery for maximum CCA, preferably Yuasa.
Anyone tried one of these, Li-ion battery and charger deal Lithium Deal - Battery + charger - Ducati 1098 1098 S - 2008 | eBay
I'm a big fan of Optimates. I've had to replace 2 batteries in 15 years. One when I left the bike uplugged from it's optimate for a couple of months and the tracker flatttened it. It wouldn't accept a charge after that. The other because of starting issues on the 1098R. The battery was 8 years old and had just run it's life. Everything else has been fine, no matter how long it's been laid up while plugged into an Optimate. And the big plus is, an Optimate it only the price of a new battery anyway. It's a no brainer in my book and I've certainly never heard that they cause as many problems as they solve.
Thanks Rob, I do have an optimate but no power in the bike garage so its never constantly plugged in. I do have a 1.5w solar power panel that I can leave on the roof to trickle charge the battery (if they actually work). I do need a new battery and was thinking of the li-ion but i'm not too sure now owing to costs. I can get a lucas lytx14bs for £32.00 job done.
Sounds too cheap. Is it an AGM? AGM is the way to go if you're not going to risk a lithium ion. "If you pay too much, you waste some of your money. If you pay too little, you waste all of your money." A Yuasa or Motobatt should be just over 50 squids.
I just Googled its a gel battery, which is not an AGM Personally not a huge fan of gel, personal preference is AGM or LiFe, but more expensive the LiFe considerably so That's not to say it won't work for you
You probably have what is known as a "dead cell" in the battery. One cell has failed, the others are still OK. The internal resistance of the battery is high - causing the battery charger to think it is fully charged. Indeed, with a multimeter it may well show in excess of 13 volts. But as soon as a load is applied, and current begins to flow, the voltage will drop. Simple way to check : put a multimeter on it - it will probably show over 13 volts. Attempt to start the engine. If the voltage immediately falls to around 9v the battery is toast. Several manufacturers claim to make chargers that will reclaim a dead battery - none of them work very successfully... Most reliable option is to replace it with a new one. If it is a lead-acid battery the best way to check is with a good old-fashioned hydrometer. Check each cell in turn - you'll probably find the SG of five at about 1275 and one around 1180.
Jock, the battery quoted is an AGM using the Lucas "liquifix" matt, it even says so on the battery case. Often advertised as gel by sellers that don't know what they are on about and think it sells better to say "gel"
( not so easy ) way to check is use a battery which you know is good , if starts easy ,,,, then try the suspect battery on something which you know starts,, if it dos not start then ,, it is the battery
Well there you go I've been @Denzil the Ducati 'ed again LOL Denzil is the expert & I'll quite happily step back and tell you to listen to what he states rather than me Apologies if I misled anybody John
At present I'd recommend that you don't fit LiPo or lithium batteries unless the manufacturer approves of this, as they are the design authority for the charging and discharge circuits. Many bikes have circuit designs that are just on the edge, by that I mean a match of load against generator and regulator sets. Several makes/models have known issues with generators being too powerful for the regulator sets. Lipo batteries weren't considered at the bikes design phase and could lead to a fire.
I stuck with a Lucas YTX14BS. Only £32 delivered, I have an optimate for it and will probably rig my solar charger up this weekend. No point spending anymore as come winter I will probably leave it flat for months on end anyway.
I fitted a Lithium on my bike in January, I don't believe in trickle chargers so don't use one. No problems in any way so far, it spins the engine over nicely. It only weighs just over 600 grams.
